Kyle B. Murray

Explaining Cognitive Lock-In: The Role of Skill-Based Habits of Use in Consumer Choice

We introduce and test a theory of how the choices consumers make are influenced by skill-based habits of use-goal-activated automated behaviors that develop through the repeated consumption or use of a particular product. Such habits can explain how consumers become locked in to an incumbent product. The proposed theory characterizes how the amount of experience with the incumbent product, the occurrence of usage errors while learning to use that product, and the goal that is activated at the time a choice is made interrelate to influence consumer preference. The results of three experiments support the theorys predictions. (c) 2007 by JOURNAL OF CONSUMER RESEARCH, Inc..

An Arousal Regulation Explanation of Mood Effects on Consumer Choice

This article examines how consumers’ preferences are affected by the interplay between their level of arousal and the valence of their current affective state. Building on prior research examining the regulation of mood valence, the authors propose that consumers are also motivated to manage their level of arousal. It is predicted that this motivation systematically affects consumers’ product preferences such that consumers in a pleasant mood will tend to choose products that are congruent with their current level of arousal, while those in an unpleasant mood will tend to choose products that are incongruent with their current level of arousal. The results of three consequential choice studies—that use scent and music to vary consumers’ moods—provide strong support for the hypotheses. The article concludes with a discussion of the theoretical implications of the results.

The Role of Arousal in Congruity-Based Product Evaluation

New products are often incongruent with consumer expectations. Researchers have shown that consumers prefer moderately incongruent products, while being adverse to extremely incongruent products. Evidence from three studies suggests that this phenomenon is highly influenced by a consumers state of arousal. Specifically, low arousal decreases preference for moderate incongruity while increasing preference for extreme incongruity, whereas high arousal decreases preference for any form of incongruity. Underlying these effects are discrete emotional states brought on by a physiological response to incongruity. Varying arousal subsequently varies the severity of the emotion, be it negative (anxiety) or positive (curiosity), which in turn varies evaluations for the product. This suggests that creating excitement around a product launch may be good for incremental innovation, but it may not be a good idea for something truly innovative.

A human capital perspective of skill acquisition and interface loyalty

It has long been recognized that humans are able to improve task performance as a result of repeated experience with a particular task, and that this type of learning consistently adheres to the Power Law of Practice. However, less attention has been given to the impact that practice, and the acquisition of skill, have on a user’s loyalty to a particular software interface. Here, we review the notion of human capital, and discuss specific examples from research into online shopping, in an effort to better understand the role of learning in the development of interface loyalty. Learning by doing is an essential aspect of human knowledge acquisition. Over time and through experience we acquire the skills we need to survive and thrive in the world. While novel tasks often require a concerted effort, over time, and with practice, many behaviors that were initially very demanding become routine. As a result, the demands of the task are diminished and cognitive resources can be allocated elsewhere. Learning to drive is a good example of this phenomenon. While initially operating an automobile can be quite demanding, with practice many of the required skills become automatic. Similarly, using a computer to type a letter or to shop for a new CD can be intimating to a novice user. Yet, experienced users find the operation of a word processor or the navigation of an online store to be a relatively simple task. The ability to learn from experience is a fundamental aspect of human existence.

Act 2.0: The Next Generation of Assistive Consumer Technology Research

Purpose: This paper reviews current research on assistive consumer technologies (ACT 1.0) and discusses a series of research challenges that need to be addressed before the field can move towards tools that are more effective and more readily adopted by consumers (ACT 2.0). Design/methodology/approach: This is a conceptual paper. Our perspective, commensurate with our current research and areas of expertise, is that of consumer researchers.Findings: We argue that while substantial advances have been made in the technical design of ACTs – and the algorithms that power recommendation systems – there are substantial barriers to wide-scale consumer adoption of such tools that need to be addressed. In particular, future ACT designs will need to better integrate current research in human judgment and decision making to improve the ease with which such tools can be used.Originality/value: From the perspective of consumer researchers, this paper highlights a set of key areas of enquiry that have the potential to substantially advance assistive consumer technology research.

Why Didn't I Think of that? Self-Regulation through Selective Information Processing

In this article, the authors present an information-processing model of self-regulation. The model predicts that consumers with an active self-regulatory goal will tend to focus on the cost (rather than the pleasure) of consumption, and as a result, they are better able to control their behavior. In contrast to prior research, the authors find that consumers with an active goal are most vulnerable to self-regulatory failure when the object of desire is farther away from them (in either time or space) because as the distance increases they focus less on the costs of consumption. Finally, results indicate that if product information is not externally available (i.e., it must be recalled from memory), people are more likely to focus on pleasure and fail at self-regulation. The results are robust across four experiments using a variety of stimuli, goal primes, and information-processing measures.

A Feature-Based Inference Model of Numerical Estimation: The Split Seed Effect

Prior research has identified two modes of quantitative estimation: numerical retrieval and ordinal conversion. In this paper we introduce a third mode, which operates by a feature-based inference process. In contrast to prior research, the results of three experiments demonstrate that people estimate automobile prices by combining metric information associated with two critical features: product class and brand status. In addition, Experiments 2 and 3 demonstrated that when participants are seeded with the actual current base price of one of the to-be-estimated vehicles, they respond by revising the general metric and splitting the information carried by the seed between the two critical features. As a result, the degree of post-seeding revision is directly related to the number of these features that the seed and the transfer items have in common. The paper concludes with a general discussion of the practical and theoretical implications of our findings.

Evaluations of a sequence of affective events presented simultaneously: An investigation of the peak-end rule

Purpose A key finding in the affect integration literature is that for a sequence of events that unfolds sequentially, individuals attend to specific aspects of these events, such as the spread, peak, end, or trend. Due to recent findings of deviations from the peak-end rule, this study closely examines the integration processes of affective events presented sequentially and simultaneously. Design/methodology/approach Three experimental studies were conducted. Study 1a (financial dashboard) and Study 1b (charity advertisement) examine consumers’ overall evaluation for a sequence of mixed affective events. Using eye trackers, Study 2 examines individuals’ attention to particular affective moments presented sequentially and simultaneously. Findings The present research provides additional support for the peak–end rule for the sequential presentation of mixed-valence affective events. However, in the simultaneous mode of presentation, the flexibility to view various affective events decreases the disproportionate weights given to specific events, a divergence from the peak–end rule. Research limitations/implications Although the tempering effect of simultaneous presentation can be concluded, further studies are required to discern how individuals process these events and develop a predictive rule. Practical implications The results of the present study provide clear and actionable directions for application developers and advertising agencies: when communicating information or developing an advertisement, consideration should be given to how each affective event is being communicated. Originality/value It is argued that in the simultaneous mode of presentation, the flexibility to view various affective events allows greater shifts in attention that increase the salience of interconnections and thereby decrease the disproportionate weights given to specific events.

Feedback, task performance, and interface preferences

ABSTRACT Interface preferences are influenced by switching costs, including cognitive switching costs of thinking and task performance. In this research, we use feedback intervention theory to predict that feedback can have psychological effects that override the lock-in effect of cognitive switching costs on interface preference. To demonstrate this effect, we use normative feedback, which compares a user’s task performance to the performance of others. This focuses attention on the user’s self-concept and away from task performance. We use a hedonic information systems (IS) interface – an online game – as feedback valence should have a stronger effect on preferences for hedonic IS as opposed to utilitarian IS. Hedonic IS are preferred for their enjoyment value, as well as their productivity, and positive feedback should be more enjoyable than negative feedback. Results from an online experiment that manipulated the presence of feedback and feedback valence, for a sample of 482 users, support our hypotheses. The theoretical and managerial implications of these results are discussed.

Mental Accounting and Tuition Increases

Over the past decade, the price index for college tuition grew by nearly 80 %, a rate nearly twice as fast as the overall consumer price index during the same period (Kurtzleben 2013). College graduates in the class of 2014 are the most indebted ever, with an average student loan debt of